Wednesday, July 6, 2011

Chocolate Chip Muffins

What is the difference between a cupcake and a muffin? I'm sure it's something to do with the mixing method and the ratio of ingredients, but when I ate one of these this morning I felt like I was eating chocolate cake without the frosting for breakfast. In fairness, I did up the chocolatey flavor by included extra chocolate chips throughout the batter and on top and by using half Hershey's Special Dark cocoa powder along with the regular stuff.This week's Tuesdays with Dorie choice worked out perfectly. The only problem I had with the recipe was photographing these little guys (every time I left them alone I ended up with at least one less muffin!) I'm sure my kids didn't mind the chocolate for breakfast dilemma.

Since today is a Wednesday Want day, I thought I would show some of my favorite tools for making muffins and what I actually used to make these last night. It didn't take many dishes or any out of the ordinary ingredients (for me, that means sour cream... I'm always borrowing it from the neighbors!) You don't even need a beloved KitchenAid for muffins!

1}. Medium Mixing Bowl (mine is similar to this set from Trudeau, via Sam's Club a few years ago)

3}. Liquid Measuring Cup- I have a 1, 2, and 4 cup and at least one is always in the dishwasher. For this recipe, I skipped the buttermilk and just soured some milk with a teaspoon or so of vinegar in my measuring cup. Then I mixed in the rest of the liquid ingredients and poured it right over the dry to save a separate dish.

4}. Measuring Spoons (mine are from Target but I prefer the long skinny ones from Williams Sonoma- they would fit in any spice jar)

7}. Cookie Scoop- perfectly portioned batter every time. And I never use these for ice cream, though I know they are intended for that...

8}. In classic "do as I say, not as I do" fashion, I'd recommend sifting any time a recipe calls for cocoas powder. The final product will be smoother and the cocoa will be much better distributed.

I guess it turns out to a decent list, but I think most of you have a lot of this stuff already. With these tools and a light hand, quick and delicious muffins are in anyone's grasp. See the recipe for Dorie's Chocolate Muffins on Bridget's Blog here- they look gorgeous with the white chocolate chunks and colored muffin liners!